Illinois Circuit Court General Information

In Illinois, the circuit court is the court of
original jurisdiction. There are twentyfour
circuits in the state. Six are single
county circuits (Cook, DuPage, Kane,
Lake, McHenry and Will) and the
remaining eighteen circuits comprise
as few as two and as many as twelve
counties each. Except for redistricting
of the general assembly and ruling
on the ability of the governor to serve
or resume office, the circuit court has
jurisdiction for all matters properly
brought before it. The circuit court
shares jurisdiction with the Supreme
Court to hear cases relating to revenue,
mandamus, prohibition, and habeas
corpus. If the Supreme Court chooses
to exercise its authority in a case of
these types, the circuit court loses
jurisdiction. The circuit court is also the
reviewing court for certain state
agency administrative orders.
There are two types of judges
in the circuit court: circuit
judges and associate judges.
Circuit judges are elected
for a six year term and may
be retained by voters for
additional six year terms.
They can hear any circuit
court case. Circuit judges are
initially elected either circuitwide,
from the county where
they reside or from a sub-circuit
within a circuit, depending on
the type of vacancy they are filling.
Associate judges are appointed by
circuit judges of that circuit, pursuant
to Supreme Court Rule 39, for fouryear
terms. An associate judge can
hear any case, including criminal cases
punishable by a prison term of one
year or more (felonies) if the associate
judge receives special authorization
by the Supreme Court. Circuit judges
in a circuit elect one of their members
to serve as chief circuit court judge.
The chief circuit judge has general
administrative authority in the circuit,
subject to the overall administrative
authority of the Supreme Court. The chief judge can assign cases to general or specialized divisions within the circuit.

Circuit Court Administrative Matters

Conference of Chief Circuit Judges: The
Conference of Chief Circuit Judges is
comprised of the chief circuit judges
from the twenty-four Illinois judicial
circuits. In January 2015, Judge
Joseph G. McGraw, Chief Judge of the
Seventeenth Judicial Circuit and former
vice-chairman of the Conference, was
elected by his peers to serve as Chair
of the Conference. Judge David A.
Hylla, Chief Judge of the Third Judicial
Circuit, was elected to serve as the Vice-
Chair. The Conference meets regularly
to discuss issues related to the
administration of justice in the
circuit courts and other matters
referred to the Conference
by the Supreme Court. The
Administrative Office serves as
secretary to the Conference.

Conference Committees and
Activities: The Conference has
several established committees
which address particular
issues, and provide information
and recommendations.
Conference Committees active
during 2016 include the Article V
Committee; Chief Circuit Judges
Manual Committee; Executive
Committee; Orientation Committee;
and the Technology Committee.
From time to time, the Conference
may establish an ad hoc or special
committee convened to study specific
short-term subject matter such as the
Conference’s Special Committee on
Extended Media Coverage to address
issues related to the Supreme Court’s
Policy for Extended Media Coverage
in the Circuit Courts of Illinois, or the
Jury Representation Committee to
study whether any issues exist that relate to the disproportionate minority
representation in jury pools. Also in
2016, the Conference also established
the Court Performance Metrics
Committee to review what additional
court performance measures and data
may benefit chief circuit judges with
their responsibilities; the Associate
Judge Vacancy Committee to review
possible amendments to Rule 39
regarding the balloting process for the
selection of associate judges; and the
Evidenced-Based Pretrial Practices
Committee to review and recommend
best practices of pretrial assessment
and bail practices.

These committees of the Conference
considered topics in several areas.
The Article V Committee considered
and recommended approval of a
statewide e-Citation program offered
by the Illinois State Police, as well as
numerous local electronic citation
programs in counties throughout the
state. The Article V Committee was
also asked to develop and recommend
rules to the Conference that relate to
the court processing and management
of a newly created Civil Law Violation
related to the enactment of Public Act
99-0697 and the decriminalization
of less than 10 grams of cannabis
and drug paraphernalia. As a result,
Supreme Court Rules 585 through 590
were adopted. The Special Committee
on Extended Media Coverage made
recommendations to the Supreme
Court’s Policy for Extended Media
Coverage in the Circuit Courts of Illinois
providing for notice to the media when
court dates are added or rescheduled.
The Jury Representation Committee
recommended a proposal for a pilot
program in multiple counties designed
to improve the minority representation
in jury pools from the most diverse
counties in the state through an
alternative summonsing procedure.
The Executive Committee continued
to review policies and issues related to
court reporting services; while the Chief
Circuit Judges Manual Committee
distributed an updated Chief Circuit
Judge Manual to all members of
the Conference. The Technology Committee provided updates on the
work of the Supreme Court’s e-Business
Policy Advisory Board and Technical
Committee, including the Court’s
January 2016 Order mandating the
electronic filing of civil cases in all courts
by future dates certain. The Orientation
Committee, along with staff from the
Administrative Office, met with and
provided all new Chief Circuit Judges
with information and tools to help
guide them in their new administrative
role. Ongoing throughout the year, the
Special Committee on Standardized
Forms disseminated and reviewed
many court forms developed for use by
the Commission on Access to Justice
designed to aid self-represented
litigants navigate the justice system. All
of the many Conference committees
continued to monitor and analyze new
legislation, Supreme Court rules, policy
and forms relevant to the committee’s
focus and the administration of justice
in the trial courts as it is introduced and
adopted.

In the interest of furthering the
knowledge and skills of its members,
the Conference hosted a variety of
presentations focused on judicial and
trial court issues. For example, the
Illinois Judicial Conference Civil Justice
Committee requested the Conference’s
assistance in implementing a Civil
Juries survey on methods to improve
the jurors’ deliberative process and the
effectiveness of jury instructions. The
Special Supreme Court Committee for
Justice and Mental Health Planning
presented proposed involuntary
admission orders designed to assist
judges not as familiar with the process
and also sought feedback on a survey
regarding the convening juries for
mental health cases per statutory
provisions. The Illinois Judicial
Conference Alternative Dispute
Resolution Committee presented
to the Conference the status of civil
mediation programs in the state.
Lastly, the Conference conducted
its own survey regarding the current
rules and practices pertaining to cell
phones and other mobile devices in
the courthouses.